Speech Language Pathologist

GENERAL SUMMARY:

The Speech Language Pathologist is responsible for identifying patient care needs and priorities for care through evaluation, assessment, planning, providing treatment and/or delegating care for patients with speech, language, cognitive swallowing, or voice disorders. This process focuses on patient/family needs and assessing the patient’s response to care and progress toward outcomes.

PRINCIPAL JOB FUNCTIONS:

1. *Commits to the mission, vision, beliefs and consistently demonstrates our core values.

2. *Performs and documents an initial patient evaluation and assesses the data to identify problems.

3. *Establishes, documents, and provides a plan of care with SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, timely) goals based on evaluation of the examination data and patient needs.

4. *Provides or delegates and supervises speech language pathology patient interventions in a safe, predictable manner consistent with the established evaluation and the plan of care.

5. *Provides and documents patient/family education regarding current condition and plan of care, including home program/discharge instructions.

6. *Performs and documents patient re-examination, re-evaluates the data, modifies and documents the plan of care.

7. *Communicates relevant patient care information to other health care professionals.

8. Participates in personal and professional development by attending and/or presenting inservices (required, voluntary), department staff meetings, seminars, community education programs, and seeking ongoing developmental and educational opportunities.

9. *Maintains clinical competencies per department guidelines.

10. Uses quality improvement processes, programs or outcomes to help improve department operations.

11. Performs other related projects and duties as assigned.

(Essential Job functions are marked with an asterisk “*”. Refer to the Job Description Guide for the definition of essential and non-essential job functions.) Attach Addendum for positions with slightly different roles or work-specific differences as needed.

REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

1. Knowledge of the theory and practice of speech language therapy.

2. Knowledge of statistics and research design sufficient to understand and interpret the professional literature.

3. Knowledge of computer hardware equipment and software applications relevant to work functions.

4. Ability to apply team concepts and take initiative while working cooperatively with coworkers.

5. Ability to clinically supervise, appropriately delegate responsibility and maintain required State and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) required supervision criteria for PT/OT Technicians, support staff and students in the provision of speech language therapy activities.

6. Ability to communicate effectively both verbally and in writing.

7. Ability to work in a fast-paced environment related to changing patient needs and patient volumes including working with patients with acute, subacute, chronic and complex disease processes and those who are dying.

8. Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with all levels of personnel, medical staff, volunteer and ancillary departments.

9. Ability to proficiently and effectively evaluate, assess and treat a variety of patient population groups including pediatric, adolescent, adult and geriatric age groups.

10. Ability to treat and work with patients of diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds.

11. Ability to prioritize work demands and work with minimal supervision.

12. Ability to practice proper body mechanics to ensure personal and customer/patient safety.

13. Ability to react appropriately and perform work under stressful and in emergency situations.

14. Ability to maintain regular and punctual attendance.

EDUCATION AND experience:

Graduation from a Council of Academic Accreditation for Audiology and Speech Pathology Master’s degree level program of Speech Language Pathology required. Current licensure or eligibility for licensure in Nebraska required. Current Certificate of Clinical Competence (CCC) from American Speech and Hearing Association (ASHA) or plan for clinical fellowship completion required.

OTHER CREDENTIALS / CERTIFICATIONS:

Basic Life Support (CPR) certification required. Bryan Health recognizes American Heart Association (for healthcare professionals), American Red Cross (for healthcare professionals) and the Military Training Network.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

(Physical Requirements are based on federal criteria and assigned by Human Resources upon review of the Principal Job Functions.)

(DOT) – Characterized as light work requiring exertion up to 20 pounds of force occasionally, and/or up to 10 pounds of force frequently, and/or a negligible amount of force constantly to move objects.